Sunday, 13 October 2013

There was no Fukushima nuclear disaster.

To a nuclear physicist like me, I look upon such
public reaction half with amusement and half with dismay. The amusement comes
from the fact that so many people can be scared so easily by so little. It is
like shouting: “Ghost in the bedroom,” and everyone runs and hides in the
hills.

He writes that
the anti-nuclear activists “enjoy stoking the fear factor and
maintaining public ignorance.

Firstly
let us get something clear. There was no Fukushima nuclear disaster. Total
number of people killed by nuclear radiation at Fukushima was zero. Total
injured by radiation was zero. Total private property damaged by
radiation….zero. There was no nuclear disaster. What there was, was a major
media feeding frenzy fuelled by the rather remote possibility that there may
have been a major radiation leak.At
the time, there was media frenzy that “reactors at Fukushima may suffer a core
meltdown.” Dire warnings were issued. Well the reactors did suffer a core
meltdown. What happened? Nothing.

He then addresses
the question: “Did anyone die because of Fukushima?’

Yes they did. Why? The
Japanese government introduced a forced evacuation of thousands of people
living up to a couple of dozen kilometres from the power station. The stress of
moving to collection areas induced heart attacks and other medical problems in
many people. So people died because of Fukushima hysteria not because of
Fukushima radiation.

What about radiation leakage?

Recently
some water leaked out of the Fukushima plant. It contained a very small amount
of radioactive dust. The news media quoted the radiation activity in the
physics measure of miliSieverts. The public don’t know what a Sievert or a
milliSievert is. As it happens a milliSievert is a very small measure.

Doubling
a very small amount is still inconsequential. It is like saying: “Yesterday
there was a matchstick on the football field; today there are two matchsticks
on the football field. Matchstick pollution has increased by a massive 100% in
only 24 hours.”The
statement is mathematically correct but silly and misleading.

At
Fukushima a couple of weeks ago, some mildly radioactive water leaked into the
sea. The volume of water was about equal to a dozen home swimming pools. In the
ocean this really is a ‘drop in the ocean.’

To
a nuclear physicist like me, I look upon such public reaction half with
amusement and half with dismay. The amusement comes from the fact that
so many people can be scared so easily by so little. It is like
shouting: “Ghost in the bedroom,” and everyone runs and hides in the
hills. - See more at:
http://www.cfact.org/2013/10/12/physicist-there-was-no-fukushima-nuclear-disaster/#sthash.tjVcojc5.dpufTo
a nuclear physicist like me, I look upon such public reaction half with
amusement and half with dismay. The amusement comes from the fact that
so many people can be scared so easily by so little. It is like
shouting: “Ghost in the bedroom,” and everyone runs and hides in the
hills. - See more at:
http://www.cfact.org/2013/10/12/physicist-there-was-no-fukushima-nuclear-disaster/#sthash.tjVcojc5.dpufTo
a nuclear physicist like me, I look upon such public reaction half with
amusement and half with dismay. The amusement comes from the fact that
so many people can be scared so easily by so little. It is like
shouting: “Ghost in the bedroom,” and everyone runs and hides in the
hills. - See more at:
http://www.cfact.org/2013/10/12/physicist-there-was-no-fukushima-nuclear-disaster/#sthash.tjVcojc5.dpuf

To
a nuclear physicist like me, I look upon such public reaction half with
amusement and half with dismay. The amusement comes from the fact that
so many people can be scared so easily by so little. It is like
shouting: “Ghost in the bedroom,” and everyone runs and hides in the
hills. - See more at:
http://www.cfact.org/2013/10/12/physicist-there-was-no-fukushima-nuclear-disaster/#sthash.tjVcojc5.dpuf

To
a nuclear physicist like me, I look upon such public reaction half with
amusement and half with dismay. The amusement comes from the fact that
so many people can be scared so easily by so little. It is like
shouting: “Ghost in the bedroom,” and everyone runs and hides in the
hills. - See more at:
http://www.cfact.org/2013/10/12/physicist-there-was-no-fukushima-nuclear-disaster/#sthash.tjVcojc5.dpuf

To
a nuclear physicist like me, I look upon such public reaction half with
amusement and half with dismay. The amusement comes from the fact that
so many people can be scared so easily by so little. It is like
shouting: “Ghost in the bedroom,” and everyone runs and hides in the
hills. - See more at:
http://www.cfact.org/2013/10/12/physicist-there-was-no-fukushima-nuclear-disaster/#sthash.tjVcojc5.dpuf